ALABASTER,
Alabama -- The Alabaster City Schools District is planning on utilizing a
state-funded grant aimed at boosting participation and passing scores in
Advanced Placement classes that pays money to students and teachers for their
success.

Known as the A+ College Ready program, the Alabaster
district will use the grant to prepare students to take Advanced Placement
courses in topics including English, math and science that allows them to earn
college credit for qualifying scores.

"The entire premise of this is we as a state have really
underserved the students with opportunities to be in advanced and pre-AP and AP
classes," Alabaster Superintendent Wayne Vickers said. "Our goal here is to
increase the number of students who are not in the classes but are ready to be
in the classes. That's the key."

The grant will offer cash incentives to students and teachers. Each students gets $100 per qualifying score on an AP exam and
teachers also receive $100 for each successful student earning a passing score.
Teachers can also earn a $1,000 bonus for reaching a goal.

"It lets them know there is a payday out there for doing
this," Vickers said. "It's not easy. The AP tests are difficult but our
students can do it."

The program will also affect students before they enter
high school. For instance, middle school students will attend "pre-AP" science in
seventh grade compared to "advanced" science.

"What that does is it builds confidence in our students
and parents" for taking AP classes, Vickers said. "We want them to look at possibilities instead of
roadblocks. I believe the potential in our school system. I think we can lead
the state."

Cena Davis, the district's coordinator of curriculum and
instruction, called the change a "sweeping reform as far as what courses we
offer," while teachers will have opportunities for professional development training opportunities to
better assist students in AP classes.

"Our goal is to get more students to take AP courses because
they are more rigorous and they prepare you for college classes," Davis said.

A+ College Ready has been around since 2008 under a grant
from the National Math and Science Initiative, said Amy Fineburg, chief academic
officer for the program in Alabama.

The state was one of six to receive funding "to establish
a statewide program to train and provide incentives to students and teachers to
build an AP program," Fineburg said. The five-year grant means the state had to
take over the funding starting with the 2013-14 school year, she added.

Fineburg said the state Legislature's funding decisions
this year will determine how many new schools, including Alabaster's district,
will be accepted.

"We are hoping the Legislature will be able to provide us
with enough funds so we can take all 21 schools into the program," Fineburg
said. "If we don't get the full funding, we will have to go back and make some
difficult choices."

The program has shown success in other schools, including
those in Shelby County where students and teachers have had the opportunity to
participate.

Prior to entering the program in the 2011-12 academic year,
Calera High School had two AP courses and 28 students enrolled in them. The
school has increased the classes offered to five, while enrollment last year
was 98 students. Qualifying scores jumped from 11 total in the year before the
program to 46 last year.

Shelby County High School entered the program at the same
time as Calera, and it has seen AP enrollment jump from 59 students to 139.
Qualifying scores have increased to 32 last year compared to 18 prior to the
program.

"That is a typical trend with schools in our program,"
Fineburg said. "We're excited that Thompson will join us if the funding all
works out with the Legislature."

Thompson High School Principal Danny Steele said he is
hopeful about the success of students through the grant. "We are just so
grateful for the partnership because they are providing financial incentives. They are providing invaluable training for our teachers to provide more
rigorous instruction," he said.

"It's all about trying to provide students and teachers
the training to be successful in more rigorous courses and, bottom line, it
gets more kids ready for college," Steele said.